Mesh Trials Pushed As COVID-19 Crisis Continues

Mesh Trials Pushed As COVID-19 Crisis Continues

Introduction

The Covid-19 pandemic has urged U.S. District Judge Edmund A. Sargus, presiding over all hernia mesh lawsuits involving C.R. Bard products, to postpone the start dates for the first two bellwether jury trials that were expected to begin in May 2020 and July 2020.

According to a case management order issued on Tuesday, the start date of the first bellwether jury trial has been postponed to July 13, 2020, with a final pretrial conference scheduled for June 29 and the final pretrial conferences on July 7 and July 8.

And, in another order, the District Judge scheduled the second trial to September 29, with the first final pretrial conference on September 9, and the final pretrial conferences for September 15 and 16. The Dispositive and Daubert motions are to be filed by June 8.

Bard hernia mesh claims are consolidated under federal multidistrict litigation MDL No. 2846 in the Southern District of Ohio, presided by Honorable Edmund A. Sargus, Jr., and Honorable Kimberly A. Jolson.

Ethicon Physiomesh is a flexible, composite, macroporous, and partially absorbable mesh made of non-absorbable polypropylene by Johnson & Johnson. FDA approved the use of Ethicon Physiomesh in March 2010 for the repair of hernias and other fascial deficiencies that require the addition of strengthening or bridging material to obtain the desired surgical result. A hernia is a condition that occurs when an organ, intestine, and/or tissue squeezes through a hole or weak point in the surrounding muscle or connective tissue. The number of hernia repair operations performed every year in the USA is remarkable.

Despite the already existing mesh implants in the market, the sale of Ethicon Physiomesh increased after the FDA approval as it was promoted as a physiologically well-designed device, offering strong and comfortable healing and giving an exceptional intraoperative handling benefit. But within a few years, Ethicon globally recalled the Physiomesh after thoroughly considering the data which was revealed out of Hernia registries.

Also, lawsuits involving Ethicon Inc.’s Physiomesh Flexible Composite Mesh products are suspended from all proceedings that require in-person interaction, as per orders from the federal court. The order concludes that the Court will conduct regular telephone status conferences with Lead Counsel to determine when it is safe and appropriate to lift this suspension and resume normal litigation activities.

J&J’s subsidiary Ethicon is facing product liability lawsuits over Ethicon Physiomesh, consolidated in the federal court system as part of MDL No. 2782 in the Northern District of Georgia, presided by Honorable Richard W. Story.